Tapping the Hot Asphalt Jungle for Energy

From CNET News.com:

Massachusetts researchers argue in paper that blacktop roads would make better solar collectors than solar-electric panels by converting built-up heat into water-carrying pipes. Released at the International Symposium on Asphalt Pavements and Environment in Zurich, Switzerland, the paper argues that asphalt roads have a number of advantages over solar-electric panels as a source of distributed energy. "The significance of this concept lies in the fact that the massive installed base of parking lots and roadways creates a low-cost solar collector an order of magnitude more productive than traditional solar cells. The significantly high surface area can offset the expected lower efficiency (compared to traditional solar cells) by several orders of magnitude, and hence result in significantly lower cost per unit of power produced," according to the paper. Blacktops can continue to generate energy after the sun goes down, and upgrades with heat exchangers could be fit into road constructions, which are done every 10 to 12 years, Rajib Mallick, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, said in a statement. Also, wicking heat away from roads could reduce the "heat island" effect in densely populated areas where temperatures rise when buildings and pavement release heat accumulated during the day.

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